Governor



July 8, 1952 s. E. PARKER GOVERNOR Filed June 24, 1948 5 3 .m 5 a 2 ,f o nv m --.mf p 9 O c Vw w 1 6 ,w M4 A. s@ n 6. HM M y 1%/ I i o l 1 a e z .6

G. E. PARKER July 8, 1952 GOVERNOR 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed June 24, 1948 ,llllllllllllllllllllulllll' nmmaw LOAD on TORQUE.

George E. )Carnev- Wfrfmzmv Patented July 8, 1952 Woodward Governor Company,` vltockfor'd,Y Ill., a corporation of Illinois y A Application J une24, 1948, Serial 9 Claims. (Cl.'2644) l This invention relates to a speed responsive governor having a s'o-called speed droop characteristic for stabilizing the operation of a prime mover controlled by the governor. More particularly, theinvention relates to a speed droop governor in which the amount of speed droop is varied in value in different parts oi the governor operating range.

One object is to provide a governor of the above character in which the droop may be changed by a substantial amount in one part of the operating range without danger of causing unstable operation of the controlled prime mover and without changing the sensitivity of the governor in other parts of the operating range.

A more detailed object is to preclude danger of self-excited oscillations in the governor by automatically changing the'scale of the governor speed control spring in accordance with desired change in the amount of droop in the governor.

Another object is to provide for changing the governor speed droop along different curves within the same portion of the operating range of the governor. A

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from Athe following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a vertical sectional view of the improved governor with the main'operating parts rearranged and shown in a common plane.

Figs. 2 and 3 are fragmentary views showing certain of the parts in different operating positions. 1

Fig. 4 is a graph of the speed droop characteristic of the governor.

While the invention is susceptible of various modications and alternative constructions, I.

have shown in the drawings and will herein describe in detail the preferred embodiment. It is to be understood, however, that I do not intend to limit the invention'by vsuch disclosure, but

aim to cover all modifications and alternativev constructions falling Within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims. e

The improved speed droop governor is especially suited for use inlimparting; tol-a prime mover a speed droop characteristic 1a (Fig. 4) of low value, -for example 5%, during Athe-normal range of operation of the prime mover controlled by the governor, and a substantially greaterdroop b above a given load Which is indicated at c. The invention also contemplates selective adjustment of the governor to shift the `load limit c for example to higher point d and then increase the amount of the speeddroop as indicated at e.

No. 34,861 y' rIhe governor shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration ris intended to detect changes inthe speed cfa prime mover (not shown) and to correct for such changes by positioning a speed regulating membersuch as a rod 5 controlling the supply of energy or fuel to the prime mover. Herein,v the rodisv movable to the left from the'idln'g position shown in Fig.

1 to progressively increase the' fuel supply. A

spring 3 acts on the rod 'to urge the latter in the speed decreasingdirection..

The speed'sen'si'ng device` and theiserv'o controlled thereby may be housed in'arcasin'g'indcated generally at 6 and usually mounted on some part of the lprime mover housing.' v While the speed sensing device may take various forms,

vit is shown herein -as comprising upstanding weights or iiyballs 8 pivoted on horizontal pins 9 on a head Il] fasten the upper 'end ofy a sleeve I 2 which is journaled in a .vertical bore 130i the casing with its' lower end driven through suitable gears Mifro'm' af'shafton' 'the' prime mover.

Arms'll on the flyballsbear' upwardly against the lower race ring of a 'ball-thrust. bearing I'8 having an upper 'ring I9,- which abuts againstv a head 20 on the upper end of a valve r0d2 I The latter is slidable in a bore 22 of the sleeve rI2 and carries an enlargement or land 23 at its lower end cooperating with sleeve'ports 24 of substantially the same diameter as the length of the land. The valve thus formed controls the .flow o-f Apressure 'fluidor oil through a groove around the sleeve. to and'from a passage 35 leading to thehead end of a cylinder 25 in the casingS. l r' A 'piston ZB-reciprocates in this cylinder and .cooperates therewith to form Aa servo motor for 'variably-positioning the throttle rod5 or other device by'which the speed fofj theprirne moveris regulated. Herein,the rod 2l oi the piston is connected to the long arm 28 of a bell crank 29 pivoted at 3llon the governor casing. 6( 'I'he i form a pump Awhose outlet delivers pressure iiuid to: a passage31 leading through a groove 38 to Ythe interior ofthe vvalvesleeve l2' above the controlland 23.' When thesupply line pressure eX- ceeds'a predetermined value determined by a spring 34, iluid is by-pas'sed through a valve 40 to the pump inlet 39 which also communicates with-the oil supply line ofthe prime mover.

TheA tendency of thelyballs to lift thepilot valve rod 2l is counteracted inthe present instance Vby a resilient means in' "the `form of p a coiled compression. spring 42 'l' acting between the upper bearing race i9 and a plug 43 which is slidable endwise in a sleeve 44 movable in a guide 45 in the casing 6. For a purpose to appear presently, the plug 43 is connected to the sleeve 44 through-the medium-z of a lever 4B fulcrumed intermediate its' ends onV a pin 4T fixed to the sleeve but oiset from the axis of the plug. A rounded surface 48 on the short end of the lever bears downwardly against the plug which therefore moves with the sleeve but is movable relative thereto in response torocking ofthe lever. By manually adjusting a hand lever 49, a cam 50 may be rocked to raise or lower a pin 5I rigid with the sleeve 44 thereby correspondingly shifting the plug 43 to vary the loading of the yballs by the main speeder spring 42. In this way, theY speed setting of the governor may be varied at will.

Tcfstabilize the operationof the prime mover, theiaction of thegovernor is modified to produce a well-known. speed droop characteristic a, this beingaccomplished herein-by changing the stress inthe lSpeeder spring 42 with changes in the position. of the servo piston 26. Tothis end,l the longer end-portion ofthe-lever 45 is pivotally connected at52 to alink 53- whichvis pivoted at 54 on ashort arm of theservoactuated bell crank 29. Thus, the lever is movedprogressively back and forth with the servo-piston 25. As the fuel rod *'is moved to the right to decrease the fuel supply, the: lever 46 is swung counterclockwise about its fulcrum 41-thereby shifting the plug 43 downwardly to compress the'spring 42 and thus increase the loadingof the flyballs. Conversely, movement ofthe-servo toincrease the fuelsupply and the. torque of the prime mover is accompanied by' reverse or clockwise turning of the lever 46 and raising of the plug 43 to reduce the Speeder spring force applied. to the yballs so thatt the latter: will center at a lower speed. Such progressive readjustment of the counteracting force on the flyballsproduces the speed droop characteristic a. The ratio of transmission of the servo motionV and therefore the amount of the speed droop d may beV varied as desired by adjusting the-length of the short end portion of the lever 46 which, for this purpose, is made in two parts clampedY together by a screw 54 on one part extending through a slot in the other part, the pivot 41 supporting theformer. part.

To increase the speed droop substantially as indicated at b (Fig. 4), provision is made for effecting a substantially greater reduction in the force counteracting the ilyball force whenV the fuel rod 5 reaches a predetermined position, this being accomplished through the medium of spring Y means'of higher scale or greater stiffness than. the

primary spring force through which the speed droop a is obtained. In the present instance an auxiliary spring 55 of substantially higher scale than the spring 42 is employed and maintained ineiectual during the major portion of the load range but rendered activewhen the servo piston 26 reaches a predetermined position. Thereupon, the spring force is applied to the ilyballs 8 in opposition to the forceof the spring 42 producing a decrease in the resultant force on the yballs which decreases atan increased rate in the continued movement of the fuel rod.

Herein, the auxiliary spring is of the coiled compression type being'shorter and formed from somewhat stiffer wire than the main spring 42 so as topossessthe desired higher scale to the spring. To associate the. springwith the yballs, one end bears against an adjustable abutmentS on the upper end of a rod 51 which extendsdown through the spring 55, the plug 43, and the main spring 42. A head 53 on the lower end of the rod is disposed within and has a lost motion connection with .the valve rod head 2U and is adapted, when the rod is. raisedA from the position shown in Fig. l, to engage an inturned shoulder 59 on the valve rod.

The lower end of the spring 55 rests onan abutment 6U which, in accordance with the present invention, is shiftable axially of the spring axis to render-the spring 55 active and inactive in response to movement ofthe servo piston. Herein, the abutment 60 is formed intermediate the ends of a lever 6l fulcrumed at one end on a pin G2' which is supported by the governor casing. At the other end, the lever carries a vertically adjustable screw 63 positioned for engagement atits lower endby a rounded'upwardly facing surface 64 ontop of the bellcrank arm 28 between the pivot all and the piston rod 2l. At a predetermined .point in the upward or fuel-increasing movement of the servo piston 26, the surface 54 engages the screw 53y and raises the lever 6| in unison with the further upward movement of the servo. The normal position ofthe lever and, therefore, the point at which the lever is picked up by the servo may be varied by adjustment of the screw 53 land also of a screw 65 which threads through the lever and bears against an end portion 66 of the governor casing.

To enablethe point c at which the amount of speed droop is changedv to be varied in predetermined steps and thus produce the characteristic e, provision is made for changing the normal position ofV the lever 6I by a predetermined increment, the change preferably being controllable selectively from a point remote from the governor.

Herein, this is accomplished byshiiting the position of the lever fulcrum 62 parallel to the axis of the spring 55 by an amount corresponding to the change desired. in the position of the high droop portion speed droop characteristic. For this. purpose, the fulcrum 62, is carried by a plunger 58 slidable in a guide 59 urged by a spring Til into the positionshown in Fig` l. This position is determinedby Aengagement of a head 1I on the upper end of the plunger 68 with a stop screw 'l2 (Fig. 3) threading through the end of a casing 'I3 which is carried by the cover of the governor housing 5.

The plunger lhead 'Il formsy the. armature of a solenoid 14 disposed within the .casing 'I3 and adapted when energized todraw the armature downwardly away vfrom the stop 'i2 and thus lower the fulcrurn 52 to the position showninv Fig. 3. This lowers the abutment 59 of the auxiliary spring so that 4an additional movement of theservo actuated part-54 as indicated at x in Fig. 3 is required before the lever 6| is picked up and` moved in the fuel-increasingl movement of the servo.

Assuming that the solenoid 'I4 is deenergized and that the engine controlled by the governor is operatingr under 1a. relatively light load, the parts may be positioned as shown in Fig. 1 with the fulcrum`62 disposed in its upper position. At this time, the servo vpiston 25 moves up and down asv the engine speed decreases and increases respectively, and the primary speed droop mechanism including the lever 46 operates in the manner previously described to impart the drooping characteristic a to the engine. At this time, the auxiliary spring 55 is inactive and the centrifugal force on the iiyballs 8 is opposed by the main Y .5, spring 42 alone owing tothelost motion provided between the valve stem and the rjod '!t Now, as the load on the engine is increased, the fuel rod 5 is moved 'in the speed-increasing direction and the engine V.speed decreases along the curve a until the bell crank 29 encounters the end 63 of the lever 6 i and linitiates upward movement of the leverand theanchor vitl of the spring 55. In the initial part` of, this movement, the lost motion between lthe rodv 5 l and the Valve stem is taken up whereuponthe upper abutment 56 on the rod becomes rigid with the valve stem so that the motion of the lever 6 compresses the spring 55. This results at the point cj in the application of the spring forceto the rod 51in Aan upward directionand therefore tothe f lyballs 8 in a direction opposite to the forceexerted'on the latter by the main spring 42. As' the movement of the servo continues as shown in Fig-2, the spring 55 is compressed progressively thereby increasing the force which it exerts on the flyballs. j Y

`Since the spring 55 hasfa higher scale (for example 350 pounds perinch as compared to 33 pounds per inch for the spring A4t2). r`its force is increased more rapidly in the continued movement of the servo piston than the .force of the spring 42 is decreased by movement of the speed droop lever 46 in the same servo motion; The force thus resulting from the combined effects of the two springs decreases progressivelywith the servo motion, and, for a given servo movement, the change is substantiallyy greater than the force change by the main spring 42 alone. Thus, the slope of the speed droop curve is increased as 'indicated at b which isl advantageous in enabling additional fuel to be metered to the engine and therefore added torque. to be @derived without danger of loading the engineexcessively.

Under certain conditions lof [operation of a diesel engine, it may be desirable to extend the curve a beyond the point c and thus increase the speed droop at a higher torquevalue such as at d. This may be accomplished byenergizing the solenoid 14 which lowerslthe plunger 1| and the lever fulcrum 62 tov the positions `shown in Fig. 3. A greater fuel-increasing movement of the servo pistonis then required before the lever 6I is picked up and the force of the spring y55 becomes applied to the flyballs. As a result,

the curve a is extended to the point v,al beyond which the engine operates with aghi5hspeed droop along the curve e.

Whenever the servo piston moves downwardly or in the fuel-decreasing, directionbeyondthe position at which the screw 65 `again comes against the stop 66 as shown in Fig. l; the spring 55 will become fully expanded and the .application of its force to the ilyballs will be interrupted. The amount of speed droop is thus reduced, the engine then operating on the curve a.

With the arrangement described above, it is possible to provide for a wide change in the speed droop characteristic without danger of inducing self-excited and false oscillations in the governor and producing a resultant instability in the engine operation. This is achieved by increasing the scale of the governor Speeder spring in the high droop portion of thev operating range and, in the present instance, by making the auxiliary spring 55 substantially stiffer than the main spring which .alone isheffective in the lower part of the operating range wherein high sensitivity of the governor is achieved by employing a speeder spring of low scale.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination of, a power servo, a regulating member actuated thereby, a speed responsive governor'controlling the energization of said servo to cause movementpof'said'member in accordance with detectedspeed changes, said governor having a rotary flyweight and a spring counteracting the centrifugal `force thereon, anv

operative connection between said spring and member for transmitting the movement of said member to said spring tol impart a speed droop characteristic to said governor, an auxiliary spring of higher scale than said rst spring, a lever normally held in a predetermined position and operable when swung about its fulcrum away from said position to couple said auxiliary spring to said flyweight in a direction to decrease the force of said 4first -spring and then increase the force. of the auxiliary spring progressively in the further movement of the lever, mechanism providing a lost motion connection between said lever and said member and operable Vafter a predetermined fuel-increasing movement of the member to move said lever away from said predetermined position, and selectively operable means for changing the position of the fulcrum Vorsaid'leverwhereby to correspondingly change the' pointin. the motion of said memberat which the leveris actuated by said spring operatively connected at one end to said iiyweight, a shiftable anchor connected to the other end of said auxiliary spring and movable away from a normally inactive position to render the auxiliary spring active in applying its force to said flyweight in a direction to decrease the loading of said flyweight, a lost motion connection between said member and said spring anchor operable at a predetermined pointv in the fuelincreasing movement of the member to pick up said anchor and apply the force of said auxiliary spring to said flyweight,v and then increase the force of the auxiliary spring progressively as the movement of'saidjmember continues, and means selectively operable to change the normal position of said spring `anchor whereby to vary the position inthe movement .of said member at which said auxiliaryspring' is rendered operative.

3. The combination of, va servoaetuatedmember, a speed responsive governor regulating the actuation of said member in response to speed changes, said governor having a rotary ilyweight and a main spring counteracting the centrifugal force thereon, means connecting said spring and said member for transmitting the motion of said member to said main spring to vary the effective loading thereof and impart a speed droop characteristic to the governor, an auxiliary spring associated with saidfiyweight; vmechanism operable in the movement of said member beyond a predetermined position to connect said auxiliary spring to said ilyweight and combine the force thereof to change said speed droop characteristic, and means selectively operable .to adjust said mechanism and. vary the position at which said auxiliary spring is rendered active in the ymovement of said member.

4. The combination, of a power servo,a member movabieby said servo, a speed responsive governor controlling the energization of said servo to cause movement of said member in accordance with detected speed changes, said governor having, a rotaryfflyweight, and a spring counteracting the centrifugal force thereon, an operative connection transmitting the movement of saidmember to said spring to impart a speed droopY characteristic to said governor, an auxiliary spring of higher scale than said first spring, a lever normally held in a predetermined position and operable when swung about its fulcrum away from Vsaid position to couple said auxiliary spring. to said flyweight lin a direction to decrease the force of said first spring and then increase the force of the auxiliary spring progressively inthe further movement of the lever, and mechanism providing a lost motion connection between said lever and said member and operable `afterra predetermined fuel-increasing movement of the member to move said lever away from said predetermined position;

5. The combination of, a regulating member, a power servo for actuating said member, a speed responsivergovernor controlling the energization of said servo to cause-movement of said member back and forth in accordance with detected speed changes, said governor having a rotary iiyweight and a spring counteracti-ng the centrifugal force acting thereon, means fortransmitting the movement of said member to said springto decrease and increase theloading thereof as the member moves in the fuel-increasing and fuel-decreasing directions respectively, an auxiliary spring of higher scale than said rst spring operatively, an operative connection between said auxiliary spring and said yweight normally maintained inactive, and mechanism actuated by movement of said member and operable at a predetermined point in the fuel-increasing movement thereof to render said-connection active and apply the force of said auxiliary spring to said fiyweight and then increase the effective force of the auxiliary spring progressively as the movement of said member continues.

6. The combination of, a servo actuated member, a speed responsivegovernor regulating the actuation of said member in response to speed changes, said governor having a rotary flyweight and a main Speeder spring actingthereon, an auxiliaryspring stiffer than said main spring, a lever connected to said auxiliary spring and holding the latterv inactive while the lever is disposed in a predetermined position, a connection between said auxiliary spring and said flyweight rendered operative when the lever is swung away from such positionl to apply theforce of said auxiliary spring to said flyweight in opposition to said main spring and then increasethe effective force vof the auxiliary as the movement of saidv member continues, and means 1providing a lost motion connection for transmitting the movementof said member to saidlever. Y

7. The combination of. a servo actuated member, a speed responsive governor regulating the actuation ofsaid member in response to speed changes, said governor having a rotary flyweight and a main spring counter'acting the centrifugal force thereon, means for transmitting the motion of said memberto said spring tova'ry the counteractingv force thereof and thereby impart speed droop to said governor, an auxiliary spring associated withsaid. flyweight, a normally inactive connection between said auxiliary spring and said iiyweight, and mechanism operable in the movement of said member beyond a predetermined position to render said connection active `to transmit the force of said auxiliary spring to said yweight in opposition to said main spring and then increase the effective-force of the auxiliary spring as the movement oi Ysaid member continues, said auxiliaryv spring having a.l higher scale than said main spring. l f v 8. The combination of,k a servoactuated member, a 'speederesponsive governor regulating the actuation of said member in response tospeed changes, said governor having a rotary fiyweight and a main spring counteracting the centrifugal force thereon,fmeans for transmitting the motion of said member to saidV spring to reduce the effective force of the.- latter as the member moves in the torque-increasing direction whereby to impart speed droop to said governor, an auxiliary spring associated' with said iiyweight, a connection between. saidf auxiliary spring and said iiyweight, and mechanism normally. maintaining said connectionfinoperative in the lower portion of the load range of the governor and operable by said member at a predetermined position in the torque-increasing movement of the latter to render said connection active and apply the force of said auxiliary spring to said fiyweight in a direction to increase the amount "of .said speed droop. Y l j 9. The combinationof, a servo actuated `member, a speed responsive governor regulating the actuationofsaid `member in` response to speed changes,- Said governor Vhaving a rotary flyweight and spring constantly acting on the flyweight to counteract thel centrifugal force thereon, a connection between said member and said spring continuously transmitting Athe motion of said member to said spring. means to vary thev effective loading thereof and' impart a speed droop characteristic to the governor, a movable element normally disposed in a` predetermined position and having a lost motion connection with said member so as to be moved out of said position afterthe lost motion has been taken up, a normally inactive second spring of differentstiifness than said'rst spring, and means including a lost motion connection joining said second spring and said element and acting, afterl the lost motion .has been taken up in the latter connection, to

combine the lforce of said second spring with said first spring and thereby ,vary the loading of said flyweight. g

GEORGE E. PARKER.,

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le, ofrthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 'Whitehead oet. 26, 194s 

